NCAA complies with Commonwealth Court order to submit documents in Penn State suit

MICHAEL KUBEL / THE MORNING CALL

Old Main at Penn State University in University Park.

Old Main at Penn State University in University Park. (MICHAEL KUBEL / THE MORNING CALL)

Lori FalceOf The Centre Daily Times

The NCAA has complied with the Commonwealth Court.

According to court records available online, the NCAA has followed the order of Judge Anne Covey and submitted 477 documents for a behind-closed-doors review.

Last week, Covey ordered the documents to be turned in to the court by Friday. The move came after attorneys for state Sen. Jake Corman argued that the documents, many of them emails between non-attorneys that merely copied attorneys on the information, should not be categorized as privileged.

The NCAA countered that the documents were covered by attorney-client privilege or work product in the ongoing battle between the two sides as they contest the enforceablity of Corman's Endowment Act. Corman and state treasurer Rob McCord are suing the NCAA and Penn State.

The Endowment Act seeks to keep $60 million in Pennsylvania, in a dedicated fund for the benefit of child sex abuse victims. The money comes from a fine levied by the NCAA against Penn State following the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal, one of several punishments assessed after the university accepted the consent decree.

The Friday posting to the docket on the Unified Judicial System's website showed that the documents had arrived under seal to the court.

The two sides are heading toward a January court date. Covey previously scheduled a trial to determine the validity of the consent decree after overruling an NCAA request to dismiss the case.